Report: NCAA will suspend Texas' Kabongo for season

The University of Texas' basketball season, off to a disappointing start, might be taking a significant turn for the worse.

According to Yahoo! Sports, sophomore guard Myck Kabongo will be suspended for the rest of the season by the NCAA.

Kabongo hasn't played yet this season because of an NCAA investigation into his activities while he weighed entering last spring's NBA draft. Yahoo! reported Wednesday that the suspension would cover the full season because Kabongo lied to investigators.

Kabongo held workouts in Akron, Ohio, with Canadian countryman and good friend Tristan Thompson last spring. Thompson went to Texas and was a first-round draft pick of the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2011.

The NCAA was looking into whether Kabongo paid his own way, or if sports agent Rich Paul was involved. Yahoo! reported Paul, the agent for Thompson and LeBron James, was actively calling NBA executives on Kabongo's behalf before the draft in June.

Paul is allowed to have a relationship with any player, but Kabongo would forfeit his college eligibility if Paul covered his expenses or made a promise of representation or financial benefits.

A full-season suspension would match the NCAA's sanction against then-Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant in 2009, when he was ruled to have lied during an investigation.

The Longhorns lost to Division II member Chaminade last month in Hawaii as part of a 5-4 start. However, they earned a notable win Wednesday when they upset No. 23 North Carolina 85-67 in Austin, improving to 7-4 overall.

Kabongo, 20, averaged 9.6 points and 5.2 assists last season for a Texas team that finished 20-14. The Longhorns lost to Cincinnati in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

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